1992 Eagle Talon TSi... For Her
 

Some of you know me from my Firebird, (my first car, the one that became a SEMA 2009 build and eventually got a full 2.0 redo), but this time I’m sharing something smaller, lighter, and… for my wife.

Her first car in high school was a blue 1994 Eagle Talon (NA). She put over 100k miles on that car, drove it across the country, and still talks about it with the kind of fondness only a first car can earn. So I set out to find another that could bring that feeling back.

That search led to an original‑owner, Radiant Red 1992 Eagle Talon TSi… a 5‑speed turbo car with just 33k miles. A true survivor: clean, original, and unmolested. Exactly the kind of foundation you want when you’re trying to recreate a memory — only better.

This won’t be a daily driver.
This is a Cars‑and‑Coffee, weekend, nostalgia cruiser that she can park next to the Firebird.

The goal is simple:

Preserve the survivor quality

Refresh and modernize the right things

Keep the ’90s DSM character intact

Make it reliable, fun, and presentable

Since bringing it home, we’ve been going through the car front to back… mechanical refresh, paint correction, cleanup, and a few tasteful upgrades.

If you guys are interested, I’ll walk through all of it here the same way we’d approach a pro‑touring car: baseline it, then improve from there.

AWD? Doing some basic performance mods?



Jeff-

DSM
 

’92 TSi, so definitely a step up from her original FWD/NA car. Going to be a lot of fun!

The goal is a clean, low‑mile survivor that drives the way it should. Not going crazy with mods... manual boost controller and high‑flow intercooler piping, but nothing wild beyond that. Not sure if 2.5" cat backs are still available but that might be a possibility down the road.

Pads and rotors will get refreshed... either Brembos or the Z23 drilled/slotted setup... mostly because the original owner would wash the car and park it in the garage, so there’s a little surface rust on the braking surfaces.

VERY cool Ty!!!!!!!!

Too cool...that Talon is super clean! That's going to be a fun car.

Those were great cars for their time. This one looks great. Cool find.

Finding the Right Car
 

My wife’s first car was a blue ’94 Talon… base model, FWD, naturally aspirated… but it was hers. She drove it everywhere, put over 100k miles on it, and still talks about that car with the kind of nostalgia only a first car earns.

So when I started looking for another one, I wasn’t hunting for a project or something that needed rescuing. I wanted something that felt like her old car… just better. Cleaner. Cared for. Something that captured the memory without trying to recreate it bolt‑for‑bolt.

That search eventually led to this ’92 TSi... original owner, Radiant Red, 5‑speed, turbo, and only 33k miles. A true survivor in every sense. In DSM‑land, finding one that hasn’t been hacked, boosted, blown up, or “built” three times over is almost unheard of.

The seller had owned it since new. He bought it using his grandfather’s Chrysler discount in Gainesville, FL, then moved to Columbus, OH. Funny enough, I’m originally from Ohio (pre‑military) and my wife is originally from Florida… and we ended up here after I retired from active duty nearly 15 years ago.

Marc kept the car garaged and maintained with the kind of quiet diligence you rarely see anymore. He saved every piece of paperwork since the early ’90s… it even came with the original owner’s manuals and two factory service manuals. I knew immediately this was the one… even if it wasn’t blue.

https://youtu.be/O6rK58GBskw

I had it transported to Orlando, and seeing it roll off the trailer for the first time was one of those moments where you know you made the right call. The original paint still had that ’90s glow, the interior looked untouched, and the whole car had that unmistakable “time capsule” presence.

This is the foundation I wanted... something worth preserving, refreshing, and enjoying without changing the character. Something that would bring back memories… only better.

Awesome find. :thumbsup:

That thing is clean! I remember driving one. Fun car!

Time capsule is right. Fantastic find!

First Impressions
 

The interior is exactly what I hoped for: clean, original, and untouched. No hacked wiring, no broken plastics, no sun‑baked trim. Just that early‑’90s Mitsubishi/Eagle design that somehow feels both simple and purposeful.

The gauges are crisp, the needles aren’t faded, and all the little details still work the way they should. Even the fog light switch and dimmer wheel still have that factory resistance.

The factory cassette deck is still in place — “Computer Controlled Deck” and all. The center stack and console look like they’ve been used by someone who actually cared about their car, not someone who treated it like a disposable commuter.

The seats are in great shape, bolsters intact, fabric still soft. No rips, no stains, no weird smells. It still has that unmistakable DSM interior vibe… and somehow, it looks even better now than it did back then.

Even the hatch area is clean. The cargo cover works, the plastics aren’t scratched up, and the carpet hasn’t been beaten into submission by decades of hauling.

From the Magazine Rack
 

Sharing some magazine clippings from the era when these cars were new. These were the kinds of articles that shaped how we saw the Eclipse and Talon back then... not just as sporty coupes, but as genuinely competitive performance cars with real engineering behind them.

Eclipse/Talon — The Full Car and Driver Feature (3 Pages)

The first set is a three‑page Car and Driver preview of the ’95 Eclipse and Talon. It’s peak mid‑’90s automotive journalism... studio shots, interior photos, engine‑bay glamour, and plenty of optimism about the Diamond‑Star partnership.

A few highlights from the piece:

The turbo 4G63 was still the hero: 210 hp and 214 lb‑ft
Mitsubishi handled the interior design, aiming for something “androgynous” and sculpted
The Normal, Illinois factory gets a full shout‑out
The article frames the new cars as more refined, more powerful, and more grown‑up than the first generation
It’s fun reading this stuff now, knowing how these cars aged and how rare clean survivors have become.
Diamond‑Star Specs & Design Notes

The next is a full breakdown of the Eclipse GSX... specs, design notes, and a couple of Talon photos mixed in. It’s the kind of page you would’ve stared at in high school, memorizing numbers:

0.29 drag coefficient
AWD, 5‑speed, 0–60 in 6.7 sec
Garrett T‑25 turbo
3140 lbs curb weight

And a great quote from designer Amy Hiroshige about creating a passionate, sculpted interior
Even the rear seat gets roasted — “suitable only for gnomes and their most intimate quarters.”

The Comparison Test — “Good Sports”

Last up is a two‑page spread from Car and Driver’s “Good Sports” comparison: seven coupes under $20K, all parked on a scenic overlook like a ’90s movie poster.

The lineup included:
Eclipse/Talon
Probe GT
Prelude VTEC
Integra GS‑R
Celica GT
240SX SE
And one more rounding out the group

It’s pure nostalgia:

“Blistering performance costs less than one game’s pay for Barry Bonds.”

They talk about VTEC screaming to 8100 rpm, the Probe aging gracefully, and the Eclipse/Talon standing out with swoopy new bodies and upgraded drivetrains. It’s the kind of comparison that made you want to hit the dealership with a copy of the magazine in hand.

These were the articles that made you believe in these cars.
They weren’t just sporty... they were engineered, styled, and positioned to punch above their weight.